The Indian Air Force released a video clip unveiling Indian astronaut candidates for the Gaganyaan mission for the first time as part of the 91st Indian Air Force Day celebrations

The video shows her during intensive training sessions. These four Indian Air Force pilots were selected after intensive rounds to carry out ISRO’s Gaganyaan manned spaceflight mission to low Earth orbit.

On the surface of the earth we feel the force “1g”, i.e. the usual attraction.

Indian Air Force pilots were chosen for this mission instead of astronauts as India does not have an exclusive pool of astronauts. Fighter pilots can withstand high gravitational forces or “g-forces” that occur during complex flight maneuvers. Because of their profession, fighter pilots are accustomed to withstanding these forces, making them ideal candidates for astronaut missions.

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These Indian astronaut candidates have already completed training at Russia’s Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center and attended simulator and theoretical training in India. They also visited ISRO’s premier center, Vikram Sarabhai Space Center in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, WION reported.

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US President Joe Biden unveiled a mission to take Indian astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2024 during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent state visit to the US, which marks cooperation in human spaceflight. This partnership will see Indian astronauts train at the Johnson Space Center in the US state of Texas.

The ISS mission is intended to serve as a precursor to India’s Gaganyaan mission and provide valuable insights into life and work in space. Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma was the first and only Indian astronaut to travel to space in 1984 as part of the Soviet Interkosmos program.

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The video clip introducing the astronaut candidates will be released ahead of the 91st Indian Air Force Day celebrations on October 8. ISRO will conduct the first in-flight abort test of the Gaganyaan crew module by the end of this month. It is a crucial test ahead of the Gaganyaan mission, which ISRO may conduct by March 2024, WION reported.